by Cheryl Wagner

It’s hard to know where to begin when describing the achievements of D.C. Masters swimmer and world record holder, Anne Walker. Anne recently received the Elly Doyle Park award for 30 years of continuous volunteer service to the Fairfax County Parks. Anne, who is 84, has been volunteering most of her life, starting with the Red Cross as a nurse’s aide in World War II. Add to that her achievements in swimming, beginning with being state champion in backstroke and freestyle as a teenager in Connecticut, going on to be "swimmer of the year" in Washington, DC in 1936 and then a return to swimming in 1985 when she discovered Masters and senior Olympics. And of course there is also a 30-year career in federal government, working for the Defense Department, the Department of Health, Education and Welfare, and the State Department.

Anne began giving her time to the parks as a marshal at Greendale Golf Course in 1970. After 10 years at Greendale, she moved on to Jefferson, where she was a marshal for another decade and scored two holes-in-one. While working out in the pool at Providence, she discovered adapted aquatics and soon joined up, specializing in work with the visually impaired. While Anne can work with any kind of disability, she’s especially skilled with blind children. "She has a lot of sensitivity and patience," said Jean Skinner, supervisor for Adapted Aquatics. "She puts herself in their place. She lets them have time to explore their environment and be comfortable in the water. "

Anne’s swimming career is equally impressive. As a teenager in Connecticut, she was state champion in the 25 yard and 50 yard backstroke. After graduating from high school, she moved to Washington, DC where she joined the Ambassador Hotel swimming team, located at 14^th and K St. She said there were three city teams in those days: the Ambassador Hotel team, the Sheraton Hotel team and the YMCA team. She was named "swimmer of the year" in 1936 for her low board diving and backstroke and freestyle wins. She stopped swimming competitively in 1940 when she was married. Then in 1985 a friend asked if she was going to enter a qualifying round for the golf competition in the state Golden Olympics. She had never heard of the Golden Olympics and was excited to find out that there were swimming events. She trained for several weeks and took five gold medals at the state games. In 1987, Walker attended the first national competition for senior Olympics in St. Louis and since then has attended a national senior Olympics event or a Masters national event every year. She set a world record in the 200 backstroke in the Albatross Open Meet in 1998. Anne said she has so many medals she doesn’t know what to do with them. So she recycles them by giving them to the young swimmers she teaches.

I met and spoke to Anne at our Terrapin 1000/1650 meet on December 3, 2000. She has a great sense of humor and is fun as well as accomplished. Congratulations, Anne, on your well-earned award.